Magnus Brighton took over the United States as king years ago, claiming it was for the good of the citizens. His “good intentions” made him create the KEY program, giving students outside the central city the chance to get a better education. Reina Torres is thrilled when she’s accepted into the program.
Once she’s accepted into the media circuit, King Magnus requests her personally for interviews. But the more Reina talks to the king, the more she realizes there’s something much more dark and sinister going on behind the scenes. Does Reina have the ability to stop King Magnus before more teens get hurt?
Liz Long sent me copies of these books in exchange for my honest review, and I have to say, they one hundred percent fit into my reading interests. Long created a unique futuristic world and achieved something many YA dystopian authors have been criticized of–she included diversity. Not only does Reina have (multiple) female love interests, she also is a person of color, supported by many other people of color throughout the story.
While there were scenes within the book that felt similar to those in other YA dystopian texts (particularly The Hunger Games), the majority of these were included at the end, leaving the rest of the story feeling fresh and original. The romance in particular added something that other texts I’ve read didn’t have, and I enjoyed that Reina was so motivated by her desire to protect Princess Helena. She wanted to help the rest of her country, sure, but she also wanted to save the princess from her evil father.
There were also a lot of parallels between this duology and real life–things that maybe felt way too familiar. Some people might find that this is a bad thing; however, I like when a text closely aligns with the political issues in real life, as it can provide hope to its readers. For me, The Golden City expanded a lot on these tropes than The Blood King, and I thoroughly enjoyed being able to see these parallels.
An interesting take on where our future could be headed. Pick up The Golden City when it comes out on September 4th!
4/5 stars